Karp, Ponnusamy Receive Prestigious 100 Inspiring Women in STEM Award

The award, presented by INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, recognizes the work by individuals
in STEM and who serve as inspirations to others.

Tanja Karp

Two women at Texas Tech University have been honored for their efforts to enhance
participation on individual STEM field while inspiring others to pursue careers in
the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The award recognizes 100 women who inspire a new generation of women to consider careers
in the STEM fields through their work and achievements. They do so through mentoring,
research and teaching.

“The growth of STEM programs requires individuals in these fields who can not only
inspire generations of students but who can draw from all areas of society to enhance
the quality of education,” Texas Tech President M. Duane Nellis. “Dr. Karp and Logeswari exemplify the qualities Texas Tech seeks in its faculty
and students.”

INSIGHT Into Diversity has been a leader in promoting diversity both in education
and the workplace for the past 40 years, connecting employees with businesses and
institutions that embrace a diverse and motivated workforce. Through articles on recent
diversity trends and relevant news, interviews with leaders and diversity experts,
it strives toward a goal of a more inclusive culture both in business and academia.

Karp, a faculty member at Texas Tech since 2000, is focused on engineering education
and increasing interests for STEM disciplines in K-12 through robotics. Each year
she organizes the Get Excited About Robotics (GEAR) competition which brings in approximately 700 elementary and middle school students
from across the region and allows first-year engineering students the opportunity
to work on their skills while mentoring local students.

Logeswari Ponnusamy

“I am extremely thankful to my colleague Richard Gale, who felt my work was deserving
of nomination,” Karp said. “Through this award, national recognition is given to the
Texas Tech University K-12 robotics pipeline for students in West Texas that my colleagues
and I have developed and grown during the last 10 years. I would not have been successful
if it were not for the network of teachers, colleagues and students who shared my
enthusiasm and vision and significantly contributed to the success of the program.”

“I am pleased but not surprised for the recognition for Dr. Karp as a role model for
all students, men and women alike,” said Al Sacco, dean of the Whitacre College of Engineering. “Dr. Karp is a dedicated, passionate
educator who seeks every opportunity to excite, motivate and inspire all students.
I am very proud to call Dr. Karp my colleague. She is a fantastic role model for all
engineering faculty and our female engineering students, in particular.”

Ponnusamy is working in the laboratory of Kamaleshwar Singh, an assistant professor of environmental genomics and molecular carcinogenesis in
The Institute of Environmental and Human Health (TIEHH). In addition to her mentoring
others in the STEM areas, she has used her experiences growing up in a rural area
of India to pursue a career in cancer research while spreading scientific literacy.

Her current research is on the molecular mechanisms associated with the development
of resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs, specifically in the treatment of breast cancer.

“I am extremely honored to receive the INSIGHT into Diversity STEM national recognition
as an early career researcher in STEM,” Ponnusamy said. “This award is the recognition
of my efforts in moving forward in the right direction of pursuing my dream of inspiring
the younger generation. It motivates me to move further to contribute something meaningful
to the community. Receiving this honor as a student of Texas Tech University means
so much to me.”

She also is an associate council member for the American Association for Cancer Research,
serves on the membership committee of Women Graduates USA and is on the global outreach
and advisory board for the online Global Education Conference Network that advocates
for boundary-free education.

“As an international woman student, Logeswari’s motivation to pursue advanced education
in a global platform by breaking cultural barriers inspires and empowers school children
and young women,” Singh said. “She deserves this recognition.”

The Institute of Environmental and Human Health was created in 1997 as a joint venture between Texas Tech and the Texas Tech University
Health Sciences Center to assess the impact of toxic chemicals and diseases on the
physical and human environments, including air, water, soil and animal life.

Researchers investigate elements in the environment, both those that are naturally
occurring such as disease and those caused by humans, such as nuclear activity, pollution
or chemical or bioterrorism, which negatively impact the environment. It is one of
the few labs in the country dedicated to environmental toxicology.